ICETOOL and ICEMAN in DFSORT - are they same?

[Aseem_Forum]

Hi,

What is ICETOOL and ICEMAN? Are they only part of DFSORT?

Regards,

[Robert Sample]

ICEMAN is another name for the DFSORT program -- you can also use SORT and execute the same program. ICETOOL is part of the DFSORT family but it is a separate utility. From the DFSORT Application Programming Guide manual:

6.1 Overview This chapter describes ICETOOL, a multi-purpose DFSORT utility. ICETOOL uses the capabilities of DFSORT to perform multiple operations on one or more data sets in a single job step. These operations include the following:
Creating multiple copies of sorted, edited, or unedited input data sets
Creating output data sets containing subsets of input data sets based on various criteria for character and numeric field values or the number of times unique values occur
Creating output data sets containing different field arrangements of input data sets
Creating list data sets showing character and numeric fields in a variety of simple, tailored, and sectioned report formats, allowing control of title, date, time, page numbers, headings, lines per page, field formats, and total, maximum, minimum and average values for the columns of numeric data
Printing messages that give statistical information for selected numeric fields such as minimum, maximum, average, total, count of values, and count of unique values
Printing messages that identify invalid decimal values
Printing messages that give record counts
Setting RC=12, RC=4, or RC=0 based on record counts
Creating a list data set showing the DFSORT installation defaults in use
Creating list data sets showing unique values for selected character and numeric fields and the number of times each occurs, in a variety of simple and tailored report formats
Creating list and output data sets for records with: duplicate values, non-duplicate values, or values that occur n times, less than n times or more than n times
Creating output data sets with information spliced together from two or more input records with duplicate values. The information in the input records can originate from different data sets, helping you to perform various file "join" and "match" operations.
Using three different modes (stop, continue, and scan) to control error checking and actions after error detection for groups of operators.

[Anuj Dhawan]

As Robert said, "ICEMAN is another name for the DFSORT program -- you can also use SORT and execute the same program." In other words if you use PGM=ICEMAN or PGM=SORT in your SORT application - it'll invoke the underlying SORT product at your shop. There are very rare shops which would ask you to code PGM=DFSORT or PGM=SYNCSORT but at one shop I've seen this kind of programming but I'd discourage this, personally.

[Aseem_Forum]

Thanks Robert and Anuj.

[Anuj Dhawan]

You're welcome, hope we had been helpful.

Thanks,

[MartinPacker]

As for ICETOOL...

... If you're licenced for DFSORT and have it installed then you have ICETOOL automatically. And if you're looking for a simple solution to a problem check ICETOOL first. Then ICEMAN / SORT.

[Anuj Dhawan]

To add a bit more to the above explanations -- asI said before, PGM=ICEMAN and PGM=SORT are equivalent. They both will invoke DFSORT (at a DFOSRT shop). PGM=ICETOOL will invoke DFSORT's ICETOOL. ICETOOL, atSyncSort shops is usually aliased to SyncTool -- so if you code PGM=ICETOOL, SyncTool will be invoked under teh covers. On the other hand, if you are doing functions provided by the ICETOOL operators -- e.g. DATASORT, SUBSET, SELECT, SPLICE, OCCUR etc. then you MUST use ICETOOL and you should understand this difference, as a programmer.

As Frank would say many time -- if you are doing a sort or copy operation, then you can either use DFSORT directly, or you can use an ICETOOL SORT or COPY operator. If you are doing a merge, you'd want to use DFSORT, not ICETOOL since ICETOOL doesn't have a MERGE operator.

[William Collins]

If you locate Summary of Changes for SC26-7523-04 z/OS Version 1 Release 11 (PTFs - November 2009) in the DFSORT Application Programming Guide, you should find the introduction of ICETOOL Operator MERGE.

[Anuj Dhawan]

I should have been cautious: http://pic.dhe.ibm.com/infocenter/zos/v ... ca6113.htm

Thanks to keep me in order, William. Appreciate your acumen.

Regards,

[Aseem_Forum]

Excellent discussion and insight. Thanks guys. Special Thanks to William.